Chapter 48

Once they got had gotten out of the lift, everyone got on their broomsticks that still lay discarded near the telephone booth and kicked off back to Hogwarts. Soon, the little telephone booth and Helena's broomstick faded into the distance.

Everyone was in shock, Helena was dead, and most of them had just left their parents at the mercy of the Order and smack in the heart of the Ministry.

By the time they got back at Hogwarts, there was a pale line of green in the distant sky. Dawn was approaching.

They landed just on the outskirts of Hogsmeade and crept through the sunrise city ducking behind shops to stay out of the eyesight of innkeepers opening up for the day.

When they'd finally reached Hogwarts, the morning sun was past the horizon, almost 9 o'clock already.

Everyone would be continuing their morning routine by now, no idea that one student would be missing within their midst of hustle.

Calypso was so upset she barely heard any of Daphne's questions, nor was she upset at the Prophet that seemed to have switched up overnight to defend Potter.

The only good thing was that her mother escaped Azkaban, at the cost of Lucius, her father, and many others being captured and for some, recaptured.

For the rest of the day, it was pretty uneventful, they would hold a small private funeral for Helena sometime over the summer, Hogwarts didn't care enough for death eater's children to give them a funeral, or even announce their deaths.

She was planning to go down to the lake with Draco when they bumped into Potter of all people.

"You're dead Potter" Draco hissed.

Potter raised his eyebrows. "Funny," he said, "you'd think I'd have stopped walking around. . . ."

Draco looked angrier than Calypso had ever seen him. Quite scary too, she was glad his rage wasn't directed at her. You're going to pay," said Draco in a voice barely louder than a whisper. "I'm going to make you pay for what you've done to my father. . . ."

"Well, I'm terrified now," said Potter sarcastically. "I s'pose Lord Voldemort's just a warm-up act compared to you three — what's the matter?"

Calypso pointed her wand at him. "Remember when I saw I wouldn't hesitate to kill you? I wasn't lying", she said cooly. "You'll wish you were never alive Potter"
Potter drew his wand too and pointed at each one of them in turn but before he could do anything, Professor Snape emerged in the staircase.

"What are you doing, Potter?" said Snape coldly as ever, as he strode over to the four of them.

"I'm trying to decide what curse to use on Lestrange, sir," said Potter fiercely.

Snape stared at him. "Put that wand away at once," he said curtly. "Ten points from Gryff —"

Snape looked toward the giant hourglasses on the walls and gave a sneering smile.

There were no points in that hourglass.

"Add some more?"

Professor McGonagall had just stumped up the stone steps into the castle. She was carrying a tartan carpetbag in one hand and leaning heavily on a walking stick with her other, but otherwise looked quite well.

"Professor McGonagall!" said Snape, striding forward. "Out of St. Mungo's, I see!"

"Yes, Professor Snape," said Professor McGonagall, shrugging off her traveling cloak, "I'm quite as good as new. You two — Crabbe — Goyle —"

She beckoned them forward imperiously and they came, shuffling their large feet and looking awkward.

"Here," said Professor McGonagall, thrusting her carpetbag into Crabbe's chest and her cloak into Goyle's, "take these up to my office for me."

Calypso snarled at Potter, completely ignoring McGonagall, "You are going to pay for what you did Potter! Oh, you think you're so slick, landing my father in Azkaban-"
"Miss Lestrange!" interrupted McGonagall. "Right then," said Professor McGonagall, looking up at the hourglasses on the wall, "well, I think Potter and his friends ought to have fifty points apiece for alerting the world to the return of You-know who! What say you, Professor Snape?"

"What?" snapped Snape, "Oh — well — I suppose . . ."

"So that's fifty each for Potter, the two Weasleys, Longbottom, and Miss Granger," said Professor McGonagall, and a shower of rubies fell down into the bottom bulb of Gryffindor's hourglass as she spoke.

"Oh — and fifty for Miss Lovegood, I suppose," she added, and a number of sapphires fell into Ravenclaw's glass. "Now, you wanted to take ten from Mr. Potter, I think, Professor Snape — so there we are. . . ."

Calypso waited until all the professors had left before rounding on Potter. "Now Potter, you were trying to use the cruciatus curse on me in the Ministry yes?"

Potter glared at her and opened his mouth.

Calypso silently put up a shield charm just in case and continued. "It didn't work though-"
"Pity" Potter snarled,

"Let me teach you a lesson. Cru-"
"What are you two doing?" demanded Professor Flitwick.

What was it with professors and their timing?

"Fighting is strictly prohibited I'm afraid!" squeaked Flitwick. "I'll have to take 10 points each, unfortunately" and ten jewels flew out of the Slytherin and Gryffindor hourglasses. "Well, Potter, Lestrange, and Malfoy, I think you ought to be outside on a glorious day like this."

Calypso sneered at him and strode outside with Draco angrily.

At last, the evening before their departure arrived and the end-of-term feast started but Calypso had absolutely no intention of going.

To be somewhere that Helena would've very much enjoyed was too heartbreaking to process.

Instead, she fingered the little charm along with the long-eaten candy Helena had given her for their first Christmas at Hogwarts.

There was a small 'C' engraved on it with fine golden designs.

For a small second, the stupid part of her believed that Helena was going to emerge from the little charm, but nothing happened. Instead, the Bloody Baron flew right through her, uselessly wiping away the blood around his wound.

"Wait!" Calypso shouted, "Wait!"
He turned around slowly, "There's a feast about to start-"
"Yes but I need to ask you a question!"
"Can't it wait?"
"No!"
If ghosts could sigh, the Baron most definetly did. "Go on then"
Calypso looked around to make sure they were alone, which they very much were so. "People can come back after they've died right? Like, like you came back, and still walk and talk, isn't that correct?" she asked urgently.

"Yes" he said quietly, "yes, I walk and talk of course"

"So dead people don't have to disappear! They can come back, right?"
"Well, not everyone can come back…"
"What d'you mean?" Calypso asked quietly.

"Only...only wizards"
"Oh," Calypso said, relieved, "But the person I'm talking about is a wizard, she'll come back right?"
"It's hard to say," the Baron said, gazing into the sunset.

"What? Why?"
"You're talking about Helena Hitchers, yes?"
"Yes…"

"I knew a girl named Helena, she was smart and amazing-"
"Yes, but why would the Helena I'm talking about not come back?"
"As I said, it's hard to say. Helena was a kind student, talked to me all the time…"
If that was supposed to make Calypso feel guilty, she didn't feel it. "So?"
"So she might come back if she cares about your feelings," he said angrily and whished away through the walls.

Calypso growled in frustration and began to pack. She ought to, instead of picking through old, long-forgotten gifts.

The journey home the next day on the Hogwarts Express was pretty uneventful. She was honestly surprised that no one, not even Longbottom or Potter decided to attack her for what her mum did.

In a way, she was mad at her mum too for accidentally killing Helena but she was still her mother and Calypso loved her.

AN: ty for 1K views! Love you all!
Happy Christmas Eve everyone!